Mrs. Tickman’s freshman seminar class was recently assigned a kindness project where they performed a random act of kindness for someone. The project required a slide with visual representation of the act of kindness including three pictures, graphics, clip art, and one slide explaining the act of kindness. Mrs. Tickman does this project every semester with her students. The project consists of two parts. The first part is creating a kindness card (modeled after the kindness rock philosophy) and the students create an inspirational, uplifting, motivational card with a kind, positive message and then leave it somewhere for someone to find or give it to someone they feel needs it. The second part of the kindness project is performing an act of kindness. Mrs Tickman decided to start this project because she feels reinforcing kindness is a message all people need to hear. She believes in Lucius Annaeus Seneca’s quote, “Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for kindness.” While her class promotes social, emotional, intellectual, and future college planning topics Mrs. Tickman has added her own flair by introducing some additional topics like the impact of music and the concept of kindness.
Throughout the years students have done tremendous kind acts. Some examples include baking or cooking for elderly or sick neighbors, doing yard work or shoveling snow for family or neighbors, spending time with grandparents, doing Saturday chores for their parents, helping parents do household renovations, shopping and delivering groceries, or babysitting for free to give a break to parents. Mrs Tickman stated that she reminds her students the act of kindness need not be heroic and that kind acts are often small in nature but impactful in the heart of the recipient.
One of Mrs Tickman’s students this year, Mariana Pagano, decided she wanted to give back to those who work in the profession she is hoping to pursue. Mariana decided to perform an act of kindness for the nurses at Riddle Memorial Hospital Labor and Delivery Unit. She was born at Riddle and her goal in life is to be a Labor and Delivery Nurse. Mariana, after much debate, decided for her act of kindness that she would deliver the nurses a sweet pick-me-up and she brought them cookies! The nurses were so excited and thankful for the kind gesture. Mariana mentioned that one nurse said the act of kindness made her day. Mariana stated, “I felt really happy to give back and it was almost like a glimpse of hopefully, my future. Plus it was cool to see where my life started.”
We are so proud of Mariana as well of all of Mrs Tickman’s freshman seminar students for serving others and giving back. We commend Mrs. Tickman for this assignment as it shows our students that they can make a difference for others and help brighten people’s days and that an act of kindness can go a long way.
Advancement Intern Erin Donovan ‘20
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